Active implants (Active Implantable Medical Devices=AIMDs) have been well established in modern medical therapy options. Usually, active implants are composed of the two basic modules, stimulation unit and electrodes, which are connected to each other via cables. These, however, sometimes are lying far apart from each other, because in the immediate effective area of the implant, there is not enough space for the stimulator.
Thus, the stimulator is placed, e.g., with respect to neurostimulators, in the chest area within a skin fold; cables running from the chest up to the skull via the neck connect it to the electrodes in the brain. While former AIMD systems were made so to say “from one cast”, thus, stimulation unit, cables, and electrodes were connected to each other fixedly, nowadays, multi-piece configurations are prevailing. At first, the parts are implanted individually. The electrical connection of the individual parts is carried out subsequently. For this, an implantable plug connector is required. The latter may, as it is common with respect to cardiac pacemakers, be placed directly at the housing of the stimulator, or, as for example with respect to neuroprostheses, within the cable area between the components. The latter, however, is only applied for up to four channels, and thus, very “slim” plug connectors; in contrast, variants with more channels are placed directly at the stimulator.
Further developments lead to systems which are becoming continuously smaller with complex stimulation and detection functions. This is closely accompanied by a steady increase of the channel number for more selective stimulation. By this, also the requirements on the plug connector increase, which ensures the forwarding of the signals.
Known electrical plug connectors are configured according to the plug-socket-principle (“male”-“female”-principle). Hereby, the male part is formed by one or more pins, which are inserted into corresponding sockets of the female part in the assembled state. The pins of the male part also project beyond the surface, which supports the pins. It is possible that dirt accumulates at the pins and at the sockets during the implantation in a pre-assembled state.
It is an object to provide an implantable plug connector, according to which this is avoided at least partially.